The Maharashtra police will deploy drone cameras to provide security for the upcoming state Assembly session in Nagpur. According to sources, select policemen are undergoing training to operate the drones for aerial surveillance to supplement security arrangements with the Nagpur police on the ground. Maharashtra police has bought two big drones and six small ones to monitor several sensitive areas in Maharashtra. Out of these, the two big drones have been set aside to be used to secure the Nagpur Assembly. These drones can fly almost up to five kilometres.

 The winter session of the Assembly is starting from December 11 and many VIPs visit the Assembly area throughout the session. The police, which always beefs up security for the winter session, will deploy more than 10,000 personnel, half of them called in from different districts so that the session goes on smoothly.

Officials said deploying drones when thousands of people gather for morchas or protests will help senior security officials better coordinate crowd control.

“These drones will help handle some situations efficiently. Many times, thanks to the crowd the (supervising) officer can’t reach the other side of the area but if he has access to a drone, he can view the situation from where he is and take steps to control the situation,” said an officer.

V.V. Laxminarayana, additional director general of police, administration, said, “The drones can be used for efficient vigilance and quick response mechanism at the time of emergencies. Currently the drones are being checked and officers are being trained on how to handle them.”